Castle Le Royaume De La Mort
by Kalyani.Rao
Summary: Camille is walking late at night when her exboyfriend attacks her. Two strange people come to rescue her, and claim that she's a vampire and they should be trusted. But are they who they say they are? And what about Dylan... CLAIMER: This book is purely fiction: However I have created the characters, theme, and plot. All parts of this book are mine, and please do not copy.
1. Chapter 1

p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in; text-align: left;"span style="font-size: 16.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: 'Cambria','serif'; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-latin; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman';" CHAPTER ONE/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in; text-align: left;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: Gabriola; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"I struggled to push him away, but to no avail. He held onto me quite tightly, forcing me to look him in the eye. His smile showed his unnaturally white teeth, and as I looked closely at his incisors, I noticed with a gasp they were pointed and slightly longer than the rest. He leaned in to my neck, pulling back the neckline of my coat just a bit, so the soft skin above my collarbone was visible. "Camille," he whispered softly, and I cringed. "Don't call me that! You have no right-" "It'll be less painful this way." He said gently. He lowered his lips to my neck and I felt fleeting, but horrible pain, as though I had just been injured terribly. Through my fading vision I saw dark red blood dripping down my neck and staining my black trench coat, which I had worked for months at Guinevere's Diner to acquire. I was feeling dizzy. He let go of me, and I swayed unsteadily before crumpling on the cold, stone floor of the dark alleyway in which he had so rudely attacked me. The rain splashed down all around us, dripping into his perfectly gelled hair, and down my dress, and onto the ground, seeping into the drain. He turned around and walked away, without giving me a second glance. I noticed he had dropped something on the ground, but I couldn't quite make it out. As I struggled to make it out, I blacked out for good. /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in; text-align: left;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: Gabriola; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"A few hours later I came to, shifting uncomfortably. My mouth ached, and I ran my tongue under my teeth. I realized with a shock that my incisors, too, were slightly longer, and felt as if they had been sharpened, but I don't see how that would be possible. They seemed to have broken out of my gums, as they were bleeding profusely. I tried to swallow the blood, but it tasted very different than normal. It was the most luxurious, sweetest, yet salty liquid, and the taste could only be described as the most amazing thing to ever exist. I had to have some more. Realizing that my teeth now had a purpose, I held up my forearm and slashed two shallow cuts, very close together, one at a time, so the blood from both would bleed together. I hurriedly licked it up, not minding the dulled pain. I could barely feel it. The blood invigorated me as if I had been charged with electricity, thrumming through my bones and setting my nerves on fire. It was sweet, creamy even, but with a bitterness that made the whole experience alive, and tasted slightly of iron. /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in; text-align: left;"span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: Gabriola; mso-bidi-font-family: 'Times New Roman';"Suddenly someone was at my side, forcing my forearm away from my lips with a strength that couldn't be human, but I found I had the same strength, coming up from some well deep inside me. As I fought back, however, I was growing slightly weaker from loss of blood and they managed to pull my arm away. A girl and a boy, maybe 18 or 20 years old, more or less my age, were standing in front of me, the boy pulling me to my feet. He had dark blond hair, a bit on the messy side, and overwhelmingly beautiful grey eyes. His skin was very pale, as if he was one of the dead rather than the living. Personally, I wasn't sure which one I was myself. He bandaged my arm and picked me up, carrying me in his arms. "This is no way to treat a lady!" I said angrily, my voice smoother and more elegant than usual. I had little time to wonder why my voice had changed, as the boy walked quite fast and had put me into their cab. It was a sleek, black hearse-type car that might've been a 1919 Sayers Scovill Hearse. I pride myself on knowing all the old Victorian-type cars, and this happened to be one of them. "Where are we going?" I said harshly, more than a little confused. The girl turned around from the front seat and faced me, while simultaneously driving. I would be panicking, but honestly, I figured it wouldn't really matter if we crashed. Her eyes were a deep, depthless grey, impossible to read, the same as the boy's, and thick, silky brown hair fell over her shoulders in waves. Her skin was a creamy olive, not as pale as his. "We are heading to the Castle span style="background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;"le Royaume de la Mort. I am guessing you have many questions." She said, pronouncing the French perfectly, her voice rich and soft. The boy laughed quietly to himself, and the girl shot him a glare. He looked down, his grey eyes holding a hint of humor. "My name is Marcela, and the rude one is Edward." Edward looked me in the eyes and held out his hand for me to shake. "Hello." He said, his voice just as wonderful as hers, but deeper. "Your hair is quite astonishing; I haven't seen a redhead in a while." Edward said cheekily. I reached up to touch my hair self-consciously. It was a deep auburn color, and looked more dark red then carrot orange. "Thanks. What am I?" I said, and Marcela snickered at the straightforward question, showing the first hint of humor I had seen in her. "You're, um-" "Dead!" Edward interrupted, flashing me a grin. "A vampire, obviously, like us." Marcela said dryly, and continued driving. The belated shock hit me. The sharp teeth, the amazing blood, the strength, my voice, everything made sense. I was surprised to find I wasn't very upset, more confused. "But, my voice-" "We don't really know how to explain that; it might be a sort of a predator advantage, to make us more attractive to humans." I always wanted to be a murder. "And the blood?" I asked. "Well, you know vampires can't eat human food, right? It's kind of making a vampire insanely more attracted to humans, so they are forced to drink blood, making it the ultimate food for us." Marcela replied. /span/span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in; text-align: left;"span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: Gabriola; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;"As we drove on the winding road up the side of the mountain, the Castle le Royaume de la Mort loomed on, a dark castle with winding turrets and spikes, twisted faces with various emotions topping each spire. We reached the drawbridge, and as it cranked down, granting us passage, I said, "Why the fancy castle, hearse, and drawbridge, and all the traditional spooky vampire stuff?" Edward leaned back and whispered, "We're vampires!" and laughed. Marcela rolled her eyes. "No, seriously, it's because it's just more fun that way, plus, wouldn't you live in a big spooky castle if you could? This was Marcela's grandfather's castle." My first thought was, cool! Then, no, why would I want to live here? Then, as I looked at the gigantic Castle le Royaume de la Mort, I realized that of course I would. It was beautiful, in a dark, captivating way. /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in; text-align: left;"span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: Gabriola; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;"Once inside, Marcela stood next to me as Edward locked up the hearse. Inside the large wooden doors, with elaborately carved doorknockers, was a vast hall. It was tall, and wide, and had enough room for millions of people. In the middle of the cold, wooden, floor, there was a long dining table, big enough to seat forty people. At the back end of the table there was a large fireplace, with couches fancily done up in Victorian embroidery seated around it. In the left and right corners of the dining hall, there were two corridors, that led to what I would presume would be the bedrooms, library, offices, and various other rooms. Marcela smiled next to me. "C'mon, I will show you around." She said, and I smiled back, hoping I didn't seem too eager as a bubble of excitement burst in my chest. I didn't even think about him, the one who bit me, what he was doing, where he was… Leading me down the right corridor, Marcela opened the first door. Inside, there was a small bed, a desk, a shelf, and a bedside lamp. "These were the servant's rooms. There's about fifty of them." Marcela said, closing the door and walking farther down the hallway. Dimly lit lamps were posted on either side of the corridor, but they didn't do much to light the way apart from casting yellow light on the faded green wallpaper. /span/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in; text-align: left;"span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: Gabriola; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;"About ten rooms and an unused kitchen later, we reached a wooden door with a black door knocker, and Marcela stopped. "This'll be your bedroom, for now." She said, stepping out of the way. "What?" I said confusedly. "I'm going back home, right?" I asked. She raised an eyebrow. "No, not for a while. There are some clothes in the drawer, you'll find them suitable." Marcela said pointedly, and opened the door, gesturing for me to enter./span/p  
p style="text-align: left;" /p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in; text-align: left;"span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%; font-family: Gabriola; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-size: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial;"The room was circular, and in the middle of it there was a large Queen-sized bed, draped in a quilt, with different designs on each square. There were two drawer sets on the left side of the room, and they were painted a sparkling black that suited the castle's rich atmosphere. The window behind the bed that stretched up to the ceiling revealed the forest of trees outside, the pattering rain, and the darkened sky with only the light of the moon. A black chandelier hung from the ceiling, casting soft yellow light on Marcela and myself, illuminating her mahogany hair. "Do you like it?" Marcela asked, her fingers resting on the doorknob. "It's wonderful." I said excitedly. "I'll give you some time to settle in then, and you might want to ask Rose to assist you. She'll be your maidservant. Rose!" Marcela said, and then turned around to call for my maid. I've never had a maid before, so this should be interesting. "I hope it's not too much to ask…" I said. "Oh, don't worry; there is enough staff to go around." Marcela said briskly. Marcela walked out of the room and down the corridor, and I couldn't help but admire her swift, graceful, walk, as though she were gliding on the smoothest of ice. Her hips swished and she never once lost her balance, even in those tall heels and long dress. I wonder if I'll ever get that graceful, now that I'm a… vampire. The word feels strange on my tongue. It was never really used in London, the busy, bustling town full of cabbies, yelling people, and loud sirens. You never really had a chance to think there, and if you did, you couldn't hear yourself. But here, it was silent, so silent that all you could make out was the silent, steady thrum of the boiler in the other room, and the rustling of the trees. /span/p 


	2. Chapter 2

CHAPTER TWO

A lady in an apron, maybe about thirty or forty years of age, bustled up to me, smiling cheerfully but slightly nervously. "Hello, Lady Camille, I am Rose, and it's a pleasure to meet you. We've heard loads about you, dear. Would you like some tea?" Taken aback, I looked at Rose, studying her more closely. With my enhanced sight, I took in her wrinkles, wispy brown hair, crinkled brown eyes, and matronly frame. Recovering my composure, I said politely, "Yes, thank you, tea would be lovely Miss Rose." Rose smiled brightly, and said, "Sorry dear, I'm a bit nervous. You see, your eyes, they take quite a bit of getting used to!" I narrowed my eyebrows. "Sorry, what?" I asked. "You didn't notice? Oh, well, I 'spect Lady Marcela and Lord Edward will be able to tell you all about it." Rose said, smiling again and walking out of my room. For the first time, I realized there was no mirror in my room. I wondered if I could still see myself in the mirror. After all, we didn't learn much about vampires back in school, as if the teachers saw that as a worthy subject. I didn't even know if anything was myth or fact anymore, for heaven's sake! But there isn't a heaven for me…

The first black drawer set held three cotton, white, shirts. There were also two black pairs of shorts, and one black skirt, made from an incredibly soft silk. The undergarments were simple and plain, but soft.

I opened the second set of drawers, and sucked in my breath. There were two magnificent ball gowns, and a splendid black cloak folded up neatly in the corner. I unfolded the dresses, and looked at them carefully. The first one was pure red, a rich ruby color, with black lace on the low neckline, and several layers. A black velvet choker with a ruby pendant and hanging loops of crystals that was gorgeous and would suit the neckline perfectly was folded on top of it. There was even a folded up petticoat, and made the dress poof out splendidly. The second one was a light green, with white trim, and had sparkling Swarovski crystals on the neckline and trim of the dress. This petticoat was slightly lower, so the dress looked slimmer and less fancy, though very fashionable. There was a slim, plain blue dress next to this one that had no design at all, no frills, and just a pocket, not even a petticoat, more like a sundress. I decided to wear this one, and laid it out on the patchwork quilt atop my bed.

Next to the dresses there was the long black cloak. It was made of silk, and long enough so when I wore it, it would barely skim the floor. The black folds accented each other, and if I drew the cloak around me, it would cover me completely with more to spare. The cloak had two fastening buttons at the neckline, made of brass, and the hood of the cloak was big enough to hide my face in.

Sitting at the grand table with Marcela and Edward, or whom Rose referred to as Lady Marcela and Lord Edward, was pretty intimidating, especially with only my cup of Earl Grey tea, so we moved to the couches by the fire. I was wearing my blue sundress and the choker, and I thought Edward looked a bit in shock when I entered. Marcela made a little noise of triumph.

"So, you are Lady Marcela and Lord Edward?" I said, sitting down as gracefully as I could on the couch. "Oh, no, has Rose gotten to you?" Edward said sympathetically. "Lady Marcela here is a Baroness, because of her grandfather, the Baron of London. It was a really long time ago, so he really could have been the Baron of Unicorn Land, or wherever he chose, but he took up roots in London, and I'm her poor servant boy." Edward said, smirking. Marcela pushed him, hard, harder than any human would unless they wanted to kill, but Edward simply winced a bit. Their—our—strength was greater than I could imagine.

"The Baroness part is true, the servant part is not," Marcela said with disdain, looking at Edward. "He was never in the family, but rather a boy that was turned into a vampire, like you, and I happened to stumble across him, just like we to you, and he became an assistant, sidekick, best friend, if you will." Marcela said. "And please, don't call me Baroness, or Lady Marcela, Marcela is fine." I nodded, and Edward did a little mock-bow in the background. I had to suppress a smile. I was a bit confused, though, they were acting as if they had known me for a while! "Have you seen me before?" I asked curiously. "Well, we've seen you around at Guinevere's Diner, to say the least." Marcela said. "We'll explain another time; you need to know the basics of being a vampire first." Edward added.

"So, can I use a mirror?" I asked, keeping my voice light so I don't sound like a fool. Edward smiled, opening the door to the bathroom. "All yours." He said, flashing me a grin with his straight, white, teeth. I walked into the large bathroom and flicked a light switch on. The large, elaborately designed, floor-length mirror stood in front of me, and I examined my appearance with a shock of surprise. My body looked the same, but when I took a closer look, I realized I was taller, and leaner. My face had more angles to it, and had lost some of its roundness. But my eyes were the biggest change. My dark brown eyes were now a brilliant scarlet, the brightest red possible. Hearing my gasp, Edward looked at my reflection and laughed. "That's normal," he said. "When you're a newborn, your eyes stay red for about a year, then they slowly turn to grey, like mine and Marcela's. We think they go grey because it represents the loss of melanin in your skin and eyes." "Oh." I breathed, looking at my reflection still. I was beautiful, and deadly. It was a strange feeling.

I opened my mouth in the mirror and examined my teeth. They were whiter, and straighter, and didn't have crazy fangs that were two inches long like you see in cartoons or horror movies. My incisors, or 'fangs', were only slightly longer, and were not needle sharp, but sharp enough to break the skin surface of a human. "Hormones," Edward said, looking at my teeth. "When you are turning into a vampire, which you in particular were unconscious for, your body releases certain hormones in panic, because your heart stops beating and then restarts slightly differently. It forces the incisors to push further out of your gums, so you have one predator advantage, and the points seem sharper because they are naturally sharper than your other teeth." He said matter-of-factly, guiding me back towards the door. I left in a daze, but I soon came to terms with it. "Is there anything else I need to know?" I asked quietly, back in the dimly-lit hallway. "Oh, loads. The hierarchy of vampires, your anatomy, your speed, strength, smell, and eyesight stats, your attack methods, how you survive, and more. We'll teach it to you all starting tomorrow." He said. I nodded, feeling a bit overwhelmed. "All you need to know for tonight is that vampires can sleep, and you definitely need it, so sleep. And, if you get hungry, just tell Rose, she'll fix you something. Not food! Just say you're hungry. Good night!" Edward said and winked, walking off into the corridor, his figure disappearing quickly. I raised my eyebrows at that peculiar ending statement, but headed off to the bathroom, where I found a toothbrush, toothpaste, hairbrush, face wash, and a long, white, cotton nightdress. I took a clean shower, and brushed my teeth, marveling at how they had all the supplies I could possibly need. Brushing my hair with the wooden hairbrush, standing in my new cotton nightdress, I looked in the mirror at my new appearance. Lush red hair, crimson eyes, olive skin lacking in blush but not pale, lean frame, and unblemished skin. So much had changed in one night. However, I found that I was still in need of sleep, so I couldn't be entirely dead, right? I turned off the light and entered my bedroom, got into bed, and turned off the light, falling into a deep sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

CHAPTER THREE

Training day. I was woken up very early by Rose, who handed me a sandwich and a thermos. "Time to get up, dear! Edward said he had business with you today." I blinked. "But, isn't it… can't I not eat normal food?" I asked sleepily. "Just eat. The sandwich has some special protein added to the 'meat'." Rose said, pushing the plastic-wrapped sandwich into my hands. She put the thermos on the bedside table, and gave me a look, before leaving the room. Was it blood? I leaned over to taste it, picking up the cool thermos and raising it to my mouth. The liquid was sweet and mouth-wateringly delicious, tasting slightly of iron. Yeah, definitely blood. Painfully stopping myself from calling Rose to bring me more as I finished half of the thermos, I stood up from my bed, walked over to the dresser, and slid on a white t-shirt and black shorts. I wasn't sure what we were going to be doing, but I'm sure it would be rough.

I walked down the corridor, back the way we came to my room. I was pretty sure this was the way to the main hall, but not completely. I was correct, however, and found Edward waiting for me by the fire. "Are you ready to start training?" He asked, looking me up and down. He was dressed in an outfit similar to mine, but he was wearing dark black sunglasses. His hair was softly tousled and he looked quite handsome. "Yes, I'm ready." I answered. "Where's Marcela?" "She is sleeping in. Later on she has a lot of work to get to." Edward replied. He smiled and handed me a pair of sunglasses, identical to the ones he was wearing. "You'll need these, follow me." He said, then turned around and walked towards the left corridor, the other one.

When a few rooms had gone by, he stopped and turned the doorknob of one of the rooms, pushing it open. Immediately, brightness filled the corridor. Birds were chirping, just out of sight, thick, green, trees crowded the small path, and animals were all over the place, weaving their way between colorful flowers. It was the courtyard, hidden in the middle of the castle. "It's beautiful." I said breathlessly, looking at it. Edward grinned and took my arm, pulling me forwards into a small grassy clearing, with only two benches near the far side. "Are we going to be training here?" I asked. "Yeah," Edward said, then stood in front of me, his hands held loosely by his side.

"Hit me." Edward said, looking me in the eye. I raised one eyebrow. "Go on, hit me." He said with a straight face. I aimed for a punch in the face, but he saw it coming and instantly gripped my arm, forcing it down. "Rule one," he said, grinning. "Don't go for the obvious hit. They will _always_ see you coming." He said, resuming his original position. I nodded and aimed for his knee, kicking out hard. But, he dodged it and stood up the same, smiling easily. "You've got to understand that vampires have heightened senses. We can see you coming even before you can. We can hit back with 100x the strength that you can. We can smell 100x better than you can. We can hit harder, faster, and better. You have that strength inside of you, you just need to use it. Now, follow me." Edward said, and adjusted himself so he was suddenly standing behind me, his hands cupping my hands, his chin resting on my shoulder. "Now, if this was a real fight, you would be dead right now. Try to do what I just did, as fast as I did, you can do it." He said. I concentrated, and could suddenly smell the scent of the pine needles, and hear the birds chittering with even more clarity than before. It was very overwhelming, but I focused my mind on one thing. _Spin around, pop up behind him, and grab onto his waist before a second even passes._ I found time slowing down, every little thing recording in my brain, as I whirled around with the speed of lightning, grasping his waist and tipping his head back. He didn't even have time to blink, I thought proudly. Edward clapped dramatically, freeing his hands from my grip. "That was very good." He said, turning his head to smile at me. Flustered, I stepped back and he instantly righted himself. "Almost as good as me. You're a quick learner. Now, let's do that again." He said.

After hours of Edward getting me up to speed on my reflexes and teaching me different battle strategies, he decided it was time to take a break. We sat down on one of the benches together, and I took off the sunglasses without thinking. Instantly, the sun was magnified, burning down onto me. I yelled in pain, and Edward immediately forced the glasses back over my eyes. "Why would you _do_ that?" He asked angrily. "You were nearly turned to toast!" He added. I looked down, still feeling a bit blinded. Now I realized why we were both wearing these particular sunglasses. "What do they do?" I asked. "They protect you from the sun, obviously." He said, a bit annoyed. "Sorry." I said quietly, taking a bite of my sandwich that Rose had packed for me. "Is that a Rose specialty?" Edward asked, amused. "A what, sorry?" I mumbled around the sandwich. "She makes these weird sandwiches that we can eat. It's the only food that we don't have to throw up later, apparently. She makes this special kind of fake cheese and fake bread, adds a little bit of blood." Edward said, and then chuckled. "Well, great." I said, having finished the sandwich. "Are you ready to go in?" Edward asked me. "We'll go over this again tomorrow, and we can start the second part. For the afternoon, you can help Marcela, if you want. She needs you for a couple things." He said. I smiled and stood up, taking a sip of my thermos and choking. It had soured, and clotted. "Ugh!" I said, spitting out blood back into the thermos. It had gone a dark brown. "You have to drink it all immediately!" Edward said, laughing. "It goes bad?" I said in disgust, holding the thermos away from me. "Yeah?" Edward said in a _you're-so-stupid_ way. "Oops." I mumbled. "It's okay, want to go inside?" he asked sweetly. I nodded and we left the courtyard.


End file.
